


Glimpses

by DarkSakura



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Drabbles, Friendship, Headcanon, Love, relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-31
Updated: 2015-09-28
Packaged: 2018-04-18 07:00:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4696634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkSakura/pseuds/DarkSakura
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a collection of teensy drabbles, written in the confines of Dragon Age canon/headcanon. </p><p>(This is separate from my alternate universe stories.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He didn't quite look at her...

The moment she saw him there, back to her, eyes on the  _eluvian_ , her heart thudded in her chest; it was so loud it deafened, so forceful it hurt, and she choked out a low guttural sound, one only barely audible by those around her. Just as loudly and forcefully as it started, it gave way to a profound mindlessness, one born of too much remembered hurt, too much remembered joy, and the incredible ache of being bereft. 

He knew she was there, though. He’d always know where she was. Turning to look at her again could prove his undoing, so he merely turned his head to the side so his voice could be heard.  
  
“I suspect you have questions…”  
  
Her heart stopped.


	2. The Edge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another thing that popped into my head.
> 
> Alona Lavellan is from my first DA:I playthrough.

" _In another world..._ "

Those words echoed in Alona's head, over and over until it became a repetitive whirl of tones, creating it's own chaotic music until she shuddered under its weight and pulled her legs in to her chest from her perch on the battlements. Below, where the camps of the Inquisition's forces were camping, people went about their days with no thoughts of her grief, her sacrifice, and the more recent shredding of her heart. 

"My duty..." Alona managed the words around. " _Fuck_ my duty."

It would be so easy to pitch forward, to show the "faithful" that she was mortal like any of them, that it was only this blighted sickly green mark on her hand that put her in this position. She ruminated over what it would feel like. If she went headfirst, she would die on impact and never feel the rest of her body breaking.

A heavy hand landed on her back, its warmth seeping through her tunic and the leather covering the hand. Just like that, the ruminating elf stopped, and the Inquisitor stepped into her place automatically.

"I heard from Leliana," Cullen said, standing there with his hand firmly in place. 

"Word does travel," Alona said, tones hushed.

"She's told no one else," he insisted. "I only want to see how you were."

Alona wanted to say she was fine, that'd she'd be okay, but that's not what escaped her lips. "It hurts."

"It's grief as surely as if he died," came the response. "Except now what you want is before you and out of your grasp. I... might know a thing or two about that."

She blinked hard, unable to hold her tears, and she looked at the Commander curiously. "Been dumped before, have you?"

He shook his head. "Not quite, but come to my office. I'll tell you about the Hero of Ferelden." He offered the Inquisitor his hand, not commenting on her emotional state.

Alona took a deep breath and placed her hand in Cullen's extended one, still confused. "She was a human mage, was she not?"

He nodded, a small wistful smile about his mouth. "Tessa Amell was a mage in my charge when I was much younger. I attended her Harrowing." He purposefully pulled Alona from the edge, and then released her hand to place his own again at her back, guiding her to his office. "And... I would probably say in private she was my first love. It really didn't go anywhere, as much as I think we both might have wanted..." 

As she listened, Alona realized she was being pulled back from more than one edge, that others knew and understood her hurt. She could get through this.


	3. The Other Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2 from the point of view of a certain Dread Wolf.

He stood on the balcony outside the rotunda, looking out across towards the battlements where he could see Alona sitting on the edge by herself. She rocked where she was, and Solas was afraid for just a moment that she'd pitch herself over the edge. He knew better, of course. She was stronger than that and had an even greater sense of responsibility.

It came as a surprise when he saw another shadow pass along the edge closer to the inside wall. Cullen paused where he was, and Solas watched him watch Alona as she rocked to herself in the moonlight. Perhaps it was jealousy; the Inquisitor promised herself to Solas, but he had, of course, released all claim to her affection. He cursed at himself mentally, understanding that even if the human commander should be interested, he had far too great a sense of propriety and respect to swoop in so quickly.

Finally, after many long moments, Solas saw Cullen move forward and place a gentle hand at Alona's back. He could barely make out the shininess of fresh tears in her eyes when her face turned, and as he watched her talk with Cullen, her features relaxed. The Commander still remained a respectful distance aside, only just close enough for the hand still at the Inquisitor's back. After a bit of talking, Cullen extended his hand, and he led Alona off towards his office.

Solas let out a long sigh. He didn't really know what he expected to happen, but there was a selfish urge to run to Cullen's office across the courtyard, to reach for his _vhen'an_ , and tell her he was wrong, that she was worth giving it all up for.

 _No_ , he told himself. _The People need you. You have done this for her as much as them. Focus! So much more is at stake than a pair of broken hearts._

With a sigh, he turned back into the rotunda. _What Alona does with anyone else is no longer my concern_ , he lied to himself. Even with that, he knew that surely there would be no one else for either of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figure Solas needed a little attention, too.


	4. Advantage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cullen and Leliana discuss Alona's sadness.

"You love her, Commander," Leliana said, approaching so silently that Cullen jumped at the sound of her voice.

"Maker's Breath, Leliana, don't sneak up on me like that," he admonished, frowning. "And what if I do? I'm not going to be some opportunistic arse the moment she's been... freed up."

"And interesting way to phrase it," the spymaster replied. "You are a rare gentleman in that respect. More than a few of the visiting nobles have tried to woo her."

"There is such a thing as common decency, something they _clearly_ lack, but I reckon it's part of their upbringing, or the Game, or whatever reason they feel they're entitled to someone's affections," Cullen groused. "I've never cared for it."

"She has turned them all down with grace and manners," Leliana commented, and she couldn't help the small smirk when Cullen looked up at her. "I do not believe she would seek to fill the void in her heart or ease her pain with daliances."

Cullen nodded in agreement. "Nor would I personally take advantage of her like that. Anyone who would is... well, it's deplorable. Still, I miss her smile, but grief needs to be embraced before it the wounds heal."

"And this, my friend, is an act of love  _and_ respect, something you can show in your support of her," Leliana told him gently. "Alona told me how you pulled her aside, told her of your own loss so she would know you were someone who understands. Empathy goes a long way. She said she soaked your shoulder."

Cullen laughed, flushing some. "Well, she needed it." He sobered. "Hearing her sob like that was difficult. I..."

"How long?" Leliana asked, her look significant. "How long have you hidden this?"

"Honestly? From the first time I saw her, I couldn't take my eyes off her, but we'd only just met," Cullen said. "And then... well."

"Indeed," Leliana sighed. She shook her head. "Well if Solas no longer cares for her company intimately, then it is his loss. Come, let's find our dear Inquisitor and indulge in a little wine and song."  
  
"I've got reports..." Cullen protested.  
  
"Reports that you have a Second-In-Command who would help with them. Come," she insisted, and Cullen, heaving a sigh, reluctantly accepted.


	5. Marry Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellana and Cullen make longer term plans.

"Marry me."

"BARK!"

"What?"

Ellana blinked hard, barely registering Cullen's explanation. A plan? There wasn't a dog? She was hot and cold and the same time, floating and frozen as she watched his mouth move and heard the words come out, and even with that, she also felt riveted to the spot. They'd been together for years, the two since Corypheus died feeling already like marriage.

"I would! Cullen, I will," she said, but he knew her well enough to know something bothered her. It shouldn't have though; he respected her beliefs.

And so Ellana found herself pulled away by Vivienne to be made presentable ("Really, darling, why did you shave the sides your head? Is it a Dalish thing?"), and Sera fetched flowers. Cassandra rounded up Mother Giselle, and Leliana, no, Divine Victoria used her pull to make sure they had the royal garden.

"So much for a secret," Cullen muttered, earning laughter from his bride.

"You know what? I don't care. Let them talk. I won't hide my happiness even when they want to drag us down," Ellana said, and she passed the flowers to Sera so that her fiancé could take her hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do have a Lavellan playthrough where she romanced Cullen (dreamy sigh), so this popped into my head. 
> 
> Also, this is Ellana Lavellan.


	6. Scar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solas and Alona discuss the scar over her eye.

"So I must ask," Solas began, leaning over his lady. The moonlight shone over them both through the stained glass of the balcony doors just beyond, and with the illumination, he could see the lines of Alona's  _vallaslin_ clearly. 

"Ask what? I'll answer as well as I can," Alona replied, eyes on Solas curiously. 

"Why Sylaise?" he asked, tracing the lines with a light touch. 

Alona shifted her eyes aside. "I wanted to be a mother, wanted to have a home and family, and when my magic manifested, I felt it was taken away. As I grew older, though, I remembered that Sylaise also taught us fire." 

"And your skills with flame is unquestionable," Solas told her, smiling gently when Alona's eyes returned to meet his. "But what of this?" He ran his thumb along a puckered scar extending from under her eye to just past her cheekbone.

 "A  _shemlen_ tried to cut the  _vallaslin_ from my face. I'd only had it six months, and a noble from Starkhaven had me held down so he could cut it off, to see how deep the markings went," she told Solas, voice still shaking from the anger. "He'd made the cut, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up in the Keeper's  _aravel_. She said I'd burned the lot of them and we needed to move." 

"Hm," Solas said, the sound low in his throat. "Replacing one branding for another is still branding, and now you bear marks of cruelty twofold." Before Alona could ask what he meant, Solas leaned in to give her a gentle kiss.

 "Are you bothered by it?" she whispered against his lips. 

"I am bothered to see my  _vhen'an_ carrying such reminders with her," he replied. "But you are no less beautiful for your marked face. You are a survivor and have yet remained unhardened. Compassion and wisdom are your guides. You are... amazing."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is Alona Lavellan.
> 
>  


	7. Released

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This may end up in the next series I'm doing. It's a Lavellan who thought she moved on.

"What is the old Dalish curese?" Solas asked. "'May the Dread Wolf take you?'"  
  


Iselan gave him a sad weak smile. "And so he did."

 

"I did not," Solas protested. "I would not lay with you under false pretenses."

 

Iselan protested. "You lied to me!" 

 

"And you moved on," he countered, his voice taking a hard edge, but then he calmed himself, bringing his breath to the same steady cadence as before. "The Commander has captured what I released. I did not want you to be alone,  _vhen'an_."

 

"I never stopped caring for you, missing you, but I'm not some maiden to pine over a lost love when it was I who was rejected," Iselan told him, likewise forcing herself to calm. "Please, if you truly cared for me, give me the truth."

 

With that, they spoke. He told her of the  _Evanuris_ , of the Veil, of the fall of Elvhenan, and how Mythal was betrayed. It fell into place, the anger in Flemeth's voice before, the way spirits behaved, the aging and decline of the elven people. 

 

"Those who fell, who were in power and relied on the _Evanuris_ for their power and influence, of course they'd curse you for this, and we have inherited their fear and hatred," Iselan realized. "I'm... I'm sorry."

 

"You were always far more perceptive than your peers, Iselan," Solas told her. He approached, face stricken as she cried out in pain when the Anchor flared to life, descending to her knees in agony. "And we are running out of time. It is killing you. I drew you here to save your life." He knelt down before her, drawing her close, a hand pressed to her cheek. Drawing on his magic, he petrified her arm, searing the unharmed end, and he kissed her, whispering a goodbye at her lips.

 

"Be well, while you have time. Be  _happy_. Cullen... is a good man." He stood, turning around as he made to leave.

 

"Solas, I will convince you," he heard Iselan said behind him.

 

He paused, looking over his shoulder. "My love, if you succeed, it would be an event I'd treasure, but my course is set. I will  _never_ forget you." With that, he entered the  _eluvian_ and left Iselan to collapse into the dirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I've never been in love with an ancient elven god ( =P ), I have been dumped once in a relationship I thought was going very well. If I hadn't taken a chance with someone new, I'd never have given my friend a chance to become my husband. You can love someone after they've left you. You can hurt when you're alone. You can also fall in love while your heart is mending.


End file.
